Spiritual Beggars

Spiritual Beggars
Spiritual Beggars at the Rockharz 2016 in Germany
Background information
Origin	Halmstad, Sweden
Genres	Stoner metal
Years active	1994–present
Labels	Music for Nations, Inside Out Music
Associated acts	Arch Enemy, Carcass, Carnage, Grand Magus, Mercyful Fate, Opeth, Firebird, Firewind, Evil Masquerade, The Quill, The Mushroom River Band
Website	http://www.spiritualbeggars.com/
Members	Michael Amott Apollo Papathanasio Sharlee D'Angelo Per Wiberg Ludwig Witt
Past members	Christian "Spice" Sjöstrand Roger Nilsson Janne "JB" Christoffersson

Spiritual Beggars is a stoner metal band from Halmstad, Sweden, formed by Michael Amott, who is known from Arch Enemy, Carcass and Carnage. The band is heavily influenced by 1970s hard rock and incorporates elements of psychedelia into its music.

Spiritual Beggars was formed in 1993 by Michael Amott. Amott started the band after he left Carcass. Spiritual Beggars debuted with the self-titled Spiritual Beggars in 1994 and have subsequently released albums as Michael's schedule, which also includes being a full-time member of Arch Enemy, permits.

The second album, Another Way To Shine (1996) was nominated for a Swedish Grammy. The album featured artwork by the legendary artist Hans Arnold, depicting the members of the band in a fairytale world.

The third album, Mantra III, saw the band adding Per Wiberg on keyboards. Spiritual Beggars toured Europe with Fu Manchu and made several festival appearances in support of the album.

The fourth album, Ad Astra, was released in 2000 and enjoyed strong sales across Europe and in Japan. The band toured heavily on their Chasing The Stars tour that followed, supporting bands such as Iron Maiden, Monster Magnet, and Queens Of The Stone Age, as well as playing festivals and headlining shows in Europe and Japan.

2002 saw the release of the band's fifth studio recording, On Fire. This album featured a new line-up following the departure of original singer Christian "Spice" Sjöstrand. The replacements were Janne "JB" Christoffersson of Grand Magus, who had been recommended to Amott by a mutual friend, while Roger Nilsson joined to handle the bass.

On Fire album was musically and vocally more melodic and saw the band delving deeper into 1970s hard rock for inspiration. A 2003 European tour featured Spiritual Beggars alongside Clutch, Spiritu and Dozer was completed in support of the album, which was followed by a tour of Japan with Clutch as the opening act.